Wayzata school board members have selected Edina Assistant Superintendent Chace Anderson to replace retiring Superintendent Bob Ostlund.
Anderson, 47, of Chaska, and the other finalist, Prior Lake-Savage Superintendent Tom Westerhaus, toured the district and met with school officials and residents on Tuesday and Wednesday.
The board unanimously selected Anderson at a special meeting late Wednesday night. He will replace Ostlund on July 1, pending contract negotiations next year.
"I thought Dr. Anderson did a great job with communicating with all of our stakeholder groups the day he was in the district," said Wayzata board member Pat Gleason. "We had two strong candidates. We were lucky. They both did a great job of connecting with people in the district."
Anderson said in a telephone interview Thursday that "it was great getting to know the school board members and the school community. They're focused on making sure students learn and have every opportunity to succeed."
Anderson has served as Edina's assistant superintendent since 2003. Before that he was principal of Edina High School and Edina Valley View Middle School.
Edina Superintendent Ric Dressen praised Anderson's performance in the district. "Chace has done great things for Edina Public Schools. He's one of the top [education] leaders in Minnesota."
Dressen said Edina school officials will begin discussing next month how they'll find Anderson's replacement.
